Renzo Piano's 18-storey glass office block, Paddington Square, has been shortlisted for the 2026 Stirling prize, Britain's leading architecture award, standing out as the only non-brick scheme among six finalists otherwise dominated by tasteful, brick-built projects. The building, developed by the late Irvine Sellar (also behind the Shard), was originally conceived as a 72-storey residential tower dubbed the "Paddington Pole" before heritage objections forced a drastic redesign, and its inclusion is seen as a belated vindication for Sellar, who died in 2017.

The tower was scaled down by 54 storeys after Westminster Council rejected planning permission following around 1,800 objections, resulting in the more restrained cube structure that also improves the public space around Paddington station. The Royal Institute of British Architects (Riba) will announce the Stirling prize winner in October, with the remaining shortlisted entries including a brick villa near Epping Forest, a brick housing scheme, two brick extensions to Cambridge colleges, and a brick theatre extension.